Eni, BASF to make bio propanol from glycerine

RENEWABLE NEWS Eni, BASF to make bio-propanol from glycerine

Italian oil and gas company Eni has partnered with German chemical and biotech giant BASF to produce bio-propanol from glycerine, the companies announced on 29 July.

The aim of the joint R&D project was to produce advanced bio-propanol from glycerine, a by-product of biodiesel production, the companies said.

Using a catalytic hydro-treatment process to convert the glycerine, the new technology produced bio-propanol with a high yield and purity while minimising by-products, according to the statement.

Propanol obtained via this method could be added as a drop-in bio-fuel component to gasoline, the companies said.

“This collaboration … is consistent with Eni’s strategy for the development of “advanced generation” biofuels supply chains from feedstocks that do not compete with food supply chains,” Eni’s head of research & technological innovation Luisa Lavagnini said.

More than half of the world’s glycerine production originates as a by-product of the biodiesel industry with every tonne of biodiesel producing approximately 10% glycerine, according to the report.

Global glycerine production increased from 200,000 tonnes/year in 2003 to approximately 5M tonnes/year in 2020 due to increasing biodiesel production, the companies said.

Glycerine is classified as an advanced bio-feedstock due to it being a vegetable residue, according to the European RED II directive (Renewable Energy Directive, Annex IX part A).

IN BRIEF

BRAZIL: Swiss speciality chemicals firm Clariant said on 23 August that it had taken full ownership of Brazilian personal care firm Beraca.

Clariant, which has held a 30% stake in the company since 2015, agreed to acquire the remaining 70% from the founding Sabará family.

The acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close by the end of the year.

Beraca manufactures ingredients for the personal care sector including botanicals, natural vegetable oils and butters sustainably sourced from the Amazon rainforest and other Brazilian biomes.

THAILAND: NatureWorks announced on 9 August that it had obtained final authorisation from its parent companies – Cargill and Thai petrochemical firm PTT Global Chemical – to build a polylactic acid (PLA) biopolymer manufacturing complex at the Nakhon Sawan Biocomplex in Nakhon Sawan province.

NatureWorks said it would invest more than US$600M to construct the complex, which would include production sites for lactic acid, lactide, and polymer. Construction would begin in second quarter 2022, with an expected opening in 2024. The facility would have 75,000 tonnes/year of biopolymer capacity.

CJ Cheiljedang producing PHA plastic

South Korean conglomerate CJ Cheiljedang has started the mass production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) biodegradable plastic, ABC News reported on 24 July.

The firm planned to build a 5,000 tonne PHA manufacturing line in Indonesia by the end of this year.

PHA could decompose in the ocean and soil in decades compared to more than 500 years with petroleum-based plastics, said SungYeon Hwang, head of the Bio-based Chemistry Research Center at the Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology.

PHA is made by engineering microorganisms and selecting the strongest strains, which are grown in bioreactors and fed with sugar made from feedstocks. Following a

PHA can decompose in oceans and soil in decades compared with more than 500 years for petroleum-based plastics fermentation period, the material is refined and the PHA dehydrated and aggregated before being made into long strands of liquid plastic, which are later dried into solid biodegradable plastic materials, according to ABC News. Other PHA producers were US company Danimer and Japanese firm Kaneka, the report said.

Richardson acquires Control Chemical Corp

Leading Canadian agribusiness Richardson International announced on 10 August that it had acquired vegetable oil-based drilling fluids manufacturer Control Chemical Corporation.

Previously a minority shareholder in Control Chemical, Richardson has been supplying raw ingredients for its products for over 30 years.

Control Chemical Corporation retiring principal John MacPhail said Richardson had been its largest supplier of crude canola oil.

“With petroleum oil prices increasing, we are in a unique position to reach new and more expansive markets for environmentally-safe downhole, torque-reducing lubricants.”

Control Chemical manufactures a full range of proprietary vegetable oil lubricants and drilling fluids – some marketed under the Matex brand name – from its facility in Calgary, Alberta.

The company has a network of distribution partners in North America, South America, Australia, Africa, South East Asia, Mongolia, Scandinavia, the United Kingdom, Turkey and Russia.

Richardson said its oilseed crushing plant in Lethbridge, Alberta, would continue to supply crude canola oil for Control Chemical products.

Richardson is a leading handler and merchandiser of all major Canadian-grown grains and oilseeds and a vertically-integrated processor and manufacturer of oats and canola-based products. It produces a wide variety of food products and ingredients for the retail, food service and industrial markets.